Moon of the Water
by Impact Blue
Summary: AU: Hitomi, an orphan, feels something is missing in her life. She wakes up one day to find herself on Gaia, tangled in a Middle Aged style Bachelor reality show.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

* * *

Author's Note: It's been a while since I've written anything. I'm not a great writer, so creative criticism is very much appreciated. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Escaflowne. The plot is made up by me, however.

* * *

"It seems the only student absent is Hitomi Kanzaki," announced the young, red-headed female teacher as she turned to her grade book to record the information.

"I'm here!" A girl pushed through the door, gasping for breaths as if she had just run a marathon. The students in their seats glanced at the girl with wind tossed short honey-blonde hair. She averted her eyes to the ground, embarrassed to look at the teacher in the eye. Wrinkled blouse, un-ironed skirt, old school bag, everything screamed out "misfit."

"Sorry, I missed the bus," she mumbled.

"Glad you could join us, Miss Kanzaki," the teacher shook her head. "It's not very good to be late on the first day of school. Please take your seat." She pointed to a seat near the window. Hitomi did as she was directed. "For those of you that did not hear, I will be your homeroom teacher as well as your English teacher. My name is Yuzuru Yashiro. You must all be excited, today is the first day of your last year of high school…" The teacher's voice faded away as Hitomi stared out her window. The breeze played with the leaves on the trees and birds fluttered around each other. Brightly shinning sun with a light blue sky forecasted a beautiful day to come.

With the blink of an eye, the blue sky scenery changed to be replaced with a grand hall of a castle. Light filtered through the glass windows of the high ceiling room, creating a rainbow of colors. A carpet of crimson red led from the grand double doors to a platform across the large room. A small girl with short blonde hair sat in one of the two empty chairs on the platform in a frilly pink dress. Like ghosts drifting above the ground, the doors opened with a boom as a line of women with long dresses swayed into the room. They followed the carpet leading up to the platform as the young girl ran to meet them half way. The lady at the front of the line, dressed in an elegant blue gown, kneeled to her eye level as they met.

The lady greeted the radiantly smiling young girl. Her lips continued to move, but no sound could be heard from them. After the lady had finished speaking, the young girl shook her head and started crying. The lady hugged the girl close, petting her hair.

"Hitomi…" the lady's voice echoed.

"Hitomi Kanzaki!" The blonde's eyes ripped open, her body straightening to a full, upright position. The young red-headed teacher stood over Hitomi with a frown on her face as the boys whispered to each other and the girls giggled.

"Not only were you late, but you fall asleep on the first day of class?" Miss Yashiro folded her arms over her chest. "Please see me after school." More whispering and giggling could be heard as Hitomi frowned and returned her eyes to her desktop.

"It's that dream again…"

* * *

The school bell rang to signal the end of the school day. Students rushed to pack their books into their bags to hurry home. However, Hitomi stayed sitting in her chair, head on her hand, staring out the window once more. After all the students had left the classroom, the teacher walked over to the only remaining student and sat in the seat in the row across from her.

"You're a very good student from what I've seen in past years, Hitomi," Miss Yashiro started. "This kind of behavior is a bit odd. Did something happen at the orphanage over the summer?"

Hitomi turned from the window to look at her teacher, and then back to her desk.

"I no longer live at the orphanage, Miss Yashiro," Hitomi answered.

"Why not? Are they not treating you well?" she asked, shocked.

"I just felt that it was time for me to move out of there and be more independent," Hitomi said, looking at her teacher in the eyes. "I'm grateful for all they have done for me, but I'll be turning 18 soon. It just doesn't feel like home to me."

Miss Yashiro opened her mouth to speak, but Hitomi already knew what she wanted to know. "I'm working as a waitress after school to pay for the apartment." The teacher could only sigh.

"You're a responsible student, and I'm sure you can manage, but I hope you are not doing something that is over your head." She gave a weak smile. "I remember when I first moved into my own apartment. It was difficult for me. If you ever need help, please talk to me, Hitomi."

"Thank you, Miss Yashiro," Hitomi stood up, grabbing her bag. "I should be off, I have work."

* * *

Hitomi, found wandering the streets with a head injury at the age of eight and blood soaked clothes, could only remember her name. No faces seemed familiar, no memory about the time before the day she was taken into the orphanage. The doctors had diagnosed her with amnesia. They tried everything they could to revive her memories, but failed miserably. She lived at the orphanage, never standing out enough to catch the eyes of anyone who would want to adopt her.

But life for Hitomi Kanzaki continued, endless cycles of school, work, homework, and sleep deprivation. Is this all life is, she wondered. Was there more? The empty feeling that she was meant for more never left her. Neither did the recurring dream of the young girl. It seemed like a distant memory. Every night, she would wake to find herself drenched in sweat, tears, and a feeling of losing someone close to her. It's just a dream, she would tell herself. It has nothing to do with me. That feeling is probably because I can't remember my family.

Hours turned to days, days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months. It was finally the day of her graduation. She stood in line with her classmates in her cap and gown. Her name was called, she took her diploma, and it was over. While jubilant students celebrated and hugged each other and their parents, Hitomi wandered around.

"Thank you, Miss Yashiro," Hitomi said when she had found her homeroom teacher.

"Congratulations, Hitomi!" The teacher beamed and hugged her student. Hitomi nodded in gratitude and walked away as the teacher continued to congratulate the many graduates.

* * *

Tired green eyes on a solemn face stared back at her. Hitomi stood in the girl's bathroom in her work clothes, a white button down shirt with a black skirt. Nothing special, she thought. I need to get a haircut; my hair has grown past my shoulders.

A bright light flashed before her eyes and an image of the earth with its moon floated in the sky. A faint whisper of her name could be heard, the voice sounded familiar. Hitomi blinked several times and looked around, everything was the same. I'm just tired, she told herself, and left for home.

"Hitomi…" It was that voice again. Hitomi turned around, but no one was around her. She was on the outskirts of the park next to her apartment. Now I'm hearing things, she thought.

"Hitomi." There it was again, louder this time.

"Who's there!" Hitomi screamed, dashing into the park. Who keeps calling me? She chased the voice until she ran out of breath. When she stopped and looked around, she realized she was in the section of the park which was left untouched. I'm stupid, she said to herself, chasing after voices in my head.

The trees suddenly disappeared, all she could see was blinding white light all around her. She was engulfed in a pillar of light, her body floating from the earth. An image of the same event flashed in her mind. A flashback, she was sure of it. Hitomi closed her eyes, letting the pillar of light carry her to whatever adventure fate had in store.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

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Author's Note: A lack of internet connection delayed my posting of this chapter, where there's a **little** bit more substance. A little more background information, kinda. I'll admit, I'm not so great at summaries either, I have more planned than just a "Middle Aged style Bachelor reality show." But that'll be revealed as we go. As always, constructive criticism is much appreciated. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. I like it a lot though!

* * *

"Wake up." Hitomi turned over in her bed. That was the best sleep she had gotten in a while. "Hey, wake up." She was being poked in the shoulders.

Hitomi opened her eyes to come face to face with a red headed girl with crimson red eyes.

"Who…" Hitomi sat up. Her eyes bugged out and her jaw dropped. In the sky in front of her, the Earth and its moon floated. The sun was at its highest, meaning it was already noon. A beautiful field spread out in front of her speckled with trees, mountain ranges in the background. In the opposite direction, trees lined the path leading to a town. Behind the town was a tall mountain ridge, curved into a crescent moon shape, a waterfall in the very center of the mountain ridge. The waterfall culminated into a lake, over which a castle appeared to float. From the lake, two small rivers spread, one going in a southwestern direction and the other in a southeastern direction.

"Hey, are you going to sit there all day gaping?" Hitomi turned to face a girl who looked about her age sitting next to her in a fluffy yellow gown. Not too far behind her stood a black carriage with two horses and a driver on the path leading towards the city. Just like in a history book, Hitomi thought.

"What! But! I!" Hitomi stuttered. The red-headed girl could only stare at the weird blonde girl. "Where am I!" Hitomi was finally able to get out.

"Well aren't you silly," she smirked. "You're on the outskirts of the city of Fanelia. Where on Gaia have you been if you don't know where you are?"

"Fanelia? Gaia?" The honey-blonde haired girl couldn't understand. The last thing I remember was walking home. How did I end up in such a weird place? And then she remembered the pillar of light. No way, I'm dreaming. That's not possible.

"You're a strange one," the girl next to Hitomi said. "Oh, how rude of me. My name is Yukari Uchida. I was traveling to Fanelia when I saw you lying on the ground. I thought you were badly injured, but it turned out you were just asleep, and snoring I might add." The red head laughed, but stifled it when the blonde continued to give her a blank stare. "Are you okay? You seem lost." There was genuine concern in her eyes. The girl stood up and offered a hand to help Hitomi stand up as well.

"Nice to meet you, Yukari." Hitomi took the hand offered and was on her feet, her work clothes not as wrinkled as she thought they would be. The girl, who was slightly shorter than her, even with heels on, reminded her of Miss Yashiro who was always helpful and kind, not to mention the red hair and eyes. "My name is Hitomi Kanzaki. Yes, I am very lost. I have no idea where I am, nor what to do."

"Do you know where you came from then?"

Hitomi pointed up to the sky. "Earth."

Yukari busted out laughing at the absurdity. "Don't be silly, that's not possible!"

"But it's true!" The confused girl tried to explain, but all she received were mouth full of laughter from Yukari, who had began to fan her now flustered face. With the giggling subsided, the red head started speaking in a more serious tone.

"How about a deal? If you work for me as my hand maiden, you can stay with me until you get your situation settled. Since my family is in a bit of a crunch, I couldn't bring a servant with me on my travels, and it is a bit embarrassing to be without one for a woman like myself. How about it? You can leave whenever you need, just make sure to tell me beforehand." She smirked at her brilliance with the plan, but not sure why she had just offered a complete stranger help. She seemed trustworthy enough to Yukari, even if her choice of clothing were a bit questionable.

"But I don't know anything about being a maid," Hitomi stated. She wasn't sure why this total stranger was being so nice, but the possibility of running into someone that was as nice was probably slim. Accepting her proposal would be the best option, even if it were a dream. And what if it wasn't a dream! It seemed quite realistic to her. In the back of her mind, Hitomi hoped that this dream wasn't going to end very soon. The chance to see another world, even if it was all a fantasy, would be different from her usual routine.

"That's fine. I don't need everything to be done for me like most spoilt girls. You'll only need to do simple maid duties, just keep quiet and I'll do the entire talking if need be," Yukari said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Deal."

* * *

During the carriage ride into the town of Fanelia in a slightly cramped box, Hitomi learned that Yukari was the daughter of a noble in the mercantile business. She came from a large city named Austuria, traveling to Fanelia because at the age of 19, the youngest prince of Fanelia ("Prince Van Fanel," Yukari cooed) was to pick a wife soon. Yukari was 18, which fulfilled a requirement of the king's advisors as a potential candidate for the future king's wife.

The prior king of Fanelia had died years ago, and after some time, the queen passed away as well because of grief. The kingdom was currently being led by the eldest brother, Folken Fanel. However, because he was engaged to the eldest princess and only heir of Hitsuzen, he would one day become king of that kingdom, forcing him to leave Fanelia. Thus, the throne was passed down to the younger son. It was best for the young prince to have a wife as soon as possible, so they can start training her to be a proper queen and fulfill other obligations, which the advisors chose to tactically evade elaboration on for the time being.

The reason Yukari was traveling to Fanelia was because the advisors had chosen twenty young ladies to come live at the castle for the purpose of getting to know the young prince. (Like "The Bachelor" reality TV show, Hitomi thought.) Out of the hundreds of girls, she was one of the twenty chosen.

"They came to our houses without telling us that they were there to observe us," Yukari explained. "After a week, if the advisor thought that the personality of the girl was befitting that of a queen and was a good match for the prince, they offered for us to move into the castle. I was quite surprised I am a candidate, I'm quite forgetful."

"I see…" was all Hitomi could say as the gentle breeze played with her hair. She stared out of the window at the luscious scenery before her. She felt relaxed being surrounded by such natural beauty. It reminded Hitomi of the park near her home, which was a shame she never had the time to visit. She made a mental note to stop by there one day.

"There's also a rumor that the young prince is quite handsome," Yukari sighed. "I've never seen him myself, but he has black hair so dark that it shines blue! And wonderful eyes that, if you look hard enough, seem to look right into your soul!" Hitomi could only roll her eyes at the girl's enthusiasm over rumors and a prince who she had never seen before. "However," the merchant's daughter continued, ignoring Hitomi's obvious lack of interest, "the prince has been missing for quite some time. Because of that, there has also been a rumor that because of an accident, he is ugly and is afraid to show his face! The advisors refuse to comment on anything about the missing prince!"

"How irresponsible," Hitomi commented, "running away will not help you solve your problems."

"True, but there's another rumor!" Yukari perked up. There seems to be quite a few of them, Hitomi thought with another roll of her eyes. "The advisors confirmed that the prince was engaged to be married five years ago, but the girl disappeared without a trace one day. She was with her family traveling to Fanelia, but they were attacked. However, there are rumors (Yet more of them, the blonde haired girl sighed) that she survived and is hiding somewhere, maybe even in Fanelia to be close to the prince! He might be searching for her still or he already knows where she is and is staying with her!" Yukari sighed again, holding her hands together next to her face. Hitomi would bet her life that if she were in an anime, there would be hearts in her eyes and bubbles everywhere. Maybe some stars and glitters here and there too. "It's so romantic, but I won't give up! I'll make the prince love me instead of some girl that might be dead!" Her eyes burned with enthusiasm, her hand balled into a fist and raised into the air as if in a warcry.

"And the girl…" Hitomi was cut off by the overly zealous red head.

"It was an arranged marriage between the two families. Supposedly, their parents were friends." Even an uninterested Hitomi knew that this girl was very hyped up about this topic, or any topic concerning the bachelor prince for that matter. "We don't even know which family the girl was from, except for the royal family and advisors of course, and there are no facts to back up most of these gossips. They kept it secret for political reasons, or so people say. The rumor is that the girl was to marry Prince Van when he turned eighteen. There was some debate about it because the girl was six years younger than the prince at the time. She was eight when she disappeared, so she would be fourteen years old right now."

Hitomi remembered from her history class that most girls during the Middle Ages married old men as early as the age of ten. Maybe this world or fantasy or whatever was like that also. "So it's normal for a girl to be married at such an age?" Hitomi asked, trying to show interest in the conversation. She might as well, seeing as how she might be stuck with this oddball of a noble girl for a while.

"Not quite, it's a bit early, but the two families had known each other for so long, according to the rumors. The parents were okay with the early marriage. If the girl was still here, they should have been married about a year ago. The advisors were hoping for the rumors about the girl to be true, so they were hoping she would show up one day, declaring who she was and proceed with the marriage." Yukari could only laugh at that thought.

"What's so funny?" The blonde haired girl raised her eyebrows in confusion at the girl's sudden burst of laughter. The carriage was approaching the front gate of the city. There were lightly geared guards in front of the gates as well as on the towers above the gates. The guards on the towers walked back and forth, bow and arrows ready to be used at any moment. In front of the gate, the guards carried a spear, quietly chatting until they saw the approach of the carriage. They immediately went to their positions and stood still, waiting for the carriage.

"There were many girls, rich and poor, who tried to pose as the missing girl, but none of them could give a correct answer when asked for a name. Most of those people have moved away out of embarrassment." Hitomi could only smirk as those girls' absurdity. Even if the red head was a bit weird, she had a nice sense of humor and didn't seem like someone Hitomi would have any problems talking to.

At the gate, Yukari identified herself and they were allowed into the city walls. A bustling city of people opened up before Hitomi, children ran about while adults went about their business. She didn't know why, but it made her heart jump. The atmosphere felt so familiar, as if part of a warm dream of days past.

"We'll have to get you some better dresses," Yukari said, pointing at Hitomi's skirt. "Your dress isn't too short, but I don't want anyone thinking ill of my family."

* * *

The red headed girl fell onto her bed. "Finally! I was getting so tired of being in that carriage all the time."

Hitomi looked around the lightly furnished bedroom. Everything was red color with a tinge of pink. The four-poster bed on the wall farthest from the door was a dark red with a matching canopy. The bedding, carpeting, drapes, and even sofas were the same red with light pink flower designs imprinted on them. A smaller set of doors on the side led to the washroom.

"You should go change into one of the dresses we bought. We wouldn't want to attract anymore unwanted attention." Yukari was referring to the stares and whispers of other nobles Hitomi received when she had gotten out of the carriage to enter the castle. The peasants didn't care. Their first stop upon entering the city was to visit a small dress boutique to get Hitomi a few maid dresses to blend in with the people. Hitomi picked up one of the dresses and went to the washroom to change.

"Maid duties…" Yukari sprawled out on her bed while Hitomi changed. "You'll have to help me change once in a while; some of these dresses are hard to get into by yourself. Fix my hair if need be, keep my room orderly, run errands, open doors, and just stay with me most of the time. You'll have to call me 'Lady Yukari' in front of other people, but you can drop the formality when no one's around. I think that's it."

"It doesn't sound too bad." Hitomi emerged from the washroom in a grey, knee length maid gown. "What about where I'm staying or eating? If I'm not wrong, maids don't eat with their master."

"Correct," Yukari turned over on her side to look at Hitomi. "I wouldn't want you to stay with the rest of the castle's servants, so you'll have to take the sofas. As for meals, I believe there is a separate dinning room for the servants." There was a knock at the door. "Who could that be?" Yukari sat up in her bed, as Hitomi moved to open the door.

An elderly man past his prime stepped into the room. His brown hair had begun to turn grey, but he still carried an air that demanded respect from the people around him. His eyes, even though they had layers of bags under them, showed that he wasn't one to be messed with.

"Advisor Saito!" Yukari stood and curtsied to the man. "I wasn't expecting a visitor. How are you?"

"I am well. I'm sure you are finding your accommodations to your liking. It is the same as the last time you visited." As he scanned the room, his eyes landed on Hitomi, who was hidden from view as she opened the door, but was now in plain view with the door closed. His expression changed from calm to shock.

"You… You're…" he stuttered. Am I in trouble for something, Hitomi wondered, and averted her eyes to the ground as she saw servants do in movies about Victorian times.

"She's my hand maiden, Hitomi." At the mention of her name, Hitomi curtsied, trying to copy what Yukari had did.

"I see…" Saito cleared his throat and regained his composure. His attention returned to Yukari. "I came here to personally invite you to join us for dinner. The king, the prince, the advisors, and the other ladies will all be in attendance. It wouldn't be a very good idea to miss out on it."

"I'll be there, for sure," Yukari beamed. This was her chance to make a good impression on the advisors, and especially the prince. The last time she had visited about two months ago, there was a ball for the prince's nineteenth birthday. Unfortunately, she didn't know if she had actually met the prince because it was a masked ball. Even when King Folken made a toast to him, he didn't identify himself. This was her chance to make up for lost opportunities.

"I'm glad to hear that. A messenger will be sent when it is time. Now if you'll excuse me, I must attend to other matters," He said and bowed to Yukari.

"Of course, and thank you," Yukari curtsied in reply. As Saito walked through the door opened by the maid, he glanced at her, her green eyes turned to the ground. Hitomi shut the door after him.

"That was an interesting reaction." The red head opened her trunk and pulled out a nightgown. "Are you sure you've never been here before? It seems as if he recognized you."

"I'm positive."

* * *

After helping Yukari unpack her belongings, the red head decided to take a nap before going to dinner. Hitomi was told to "wander the castle and try to get to know things," since they might be staying there for a while. "Just make sure to come back by sunset," was Yukari's reminder before she fell asleep. 


End file.
